Tag Archives: ginger

Merry Christmas! I’m about to jump in my Christmas Eve dress and try out some red lipstick for the first time and head over to my cousin’s for dinner. The cookie trays are finished and the presents are wrapped. The champagne is being chilled for tomorrow’s mimosas and I’m ready to rock this holiday. It’s hard to believe Christmas is already upon us.

Let’s do gingerbread without the men or the houses. Let’s get back to gingerbread in its simplest form – a flavorful, gingery bread. That is what we have here. Tons of flavor in little bites. There is molasses, ginger, cinnamon, and a little clove for kick. The squares are soft and chewy, everything you want from a gingerbread. These are a delightful addition to the holiday tray, a perfect compliment to all the other cookies. Let the holidays begin!

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I’m sure I’ve told this story before, but I’m going to tell it again, because it is one of my favorites. A couple of years ago in the prime of my Shake Shack obsession I went to get a pint-to-go of my favorite custard, pumpkin pie. They were featuring a concrete of real pumpkin pie blended with vanilla custard and that sounded fantastic! Except, I wanted more pumpkin. So I asked the man to make my concrete with pumpkin custard.

He told me it would be weird mixing two flavors and textures together, but I stood my ground. Then he gave me a sample of pumpkin pie custard with an actual pumpkin pie piece to try and dissuade me. I was not dissuaded, that was exactly what I wanted! Needless to say I took double pumpkin pie concrete home and enjoyed every.single.bite.

Fast forward a year or two and I was at Culture Yogurt, the best froyo in the city and they were featuring pumpkin frozen yogurt and pumpkin pie mix-ins. I asked the woman at the counter if it would be weird to mix them and she was like, “of course not!” Clearly these were my people.

Anyway, these ice cream sandwiches continue my love of pumpkin on pumpkin. The pumpkin sugar cookie is chewy and tender with plenty of pumpkin spice love. The vegan pumpkin ice cream is super creamy and full of pumpkin goodness. I’ve tasted quite a few vegan ice creams and although I tasted the cashews (others did not), the texture was identical to dairy ice cream. If you love pumpkin and pumpkin spice as much as I do, make a batch of these to keep in the freezer! We’ve been enjoying them as a quick pick-me-up at work!

Cookie for Sandwiches – Preheat the oven to 350 ˚F and grease an 8×8” pan with shortening. Line the pan with parchment paper and grease the paper.

Cream the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment for one minute. Add the sugars and vanilla and beat for another minute. Scrape down the bowl and add the pumpkin. Mix until well combined.

Sift the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves together onto parchment paper. Add to the mixer and mix on the lowest speed until just combined. Mix in the almond milk.

Evenly spread the cookie into the prepared pan and bake for about 15-20 minutes or until the top is slightly browned. Let cool for 10 minutes in the pan and then remove to let cool completely.

Assembly – Using a long serrated knife, cut the cookie into two layers. Place one of the layers cut side up on plastic wrap and then place in the original 8×8” pan.

Spread the ice cream evenly over the cookie layer. Place the other layer cut side down on top of the ice cream and gently press together. Wrap the giant ice cream sandwich in plastic wrap and freezer for several hours.

Here is a secret – I’ve been going to bed early every night, early early. Like 8 p.m. early. It’s as if I’m so overwhelmed with all I have to do, I just give up and go to bed. It may be time to reintroduce caffeine back into my life because November is going to be crazy busy!

This is a an easy recipe for those of you that are crazy busy. Just toss ingredients together and let cook; maximum results for minimum effort! Plus, the recipe is completely adaptable for any ingredients you want and a great way to use up odds and ends left in the pantry.

And, it’s almost Halloween, this would a fantastic, not-so-sugary snack to nom on between fun size candy bars. pumpkin spice Chex mix is addicting. I found myself taking little bites over and over again when I was waiting for it to cool and when I was packaging it up.

This isn’t the crispiest Chex mix, but that is fine by me. I found myself looking for the pieces with the most spice mixture on top. There is rich, warm flavor from all the fall spices and a subtle sweetness from the maple syrup. My favorite bits were the Club crackers. As always, substitute the cinnamon, cloves, ginger, allspice, and nutmeg for an equal amount of pumpkin pie spice. Even if you don’t make this for Halloween, I think it would make a fantastic appetizer for Thanksgiving!

Where has my focus and perseverance gone? I’ve been spending hours staring off into space instead of completing the mountains of work I have in front of me; blog posts, papers, readings, and projects to begin – it’s never ending. My days of leisure are over and whenever I partake in a leisurely activity like cookbook reading or movie going or Call the Midwife watching, I suffer greatly and have to miss the fun due to my procrastination. Enough of that, let’s talk about happy things.

Let just call this the official start of autumnal foods. Apple cinnamon bread, apple pie overnight oatmeal, sweet potato tarts, and now pumpkin roll. There is plenty of pumpkin spice in the future, this is not the end my friends. After traveling up to Rhode Island last weekend I was completely surrounded by the gorgeous foliage; there is nothing like the bright colors of fall leaves to make the heart happy!

Fall leaves aren’t the only thing full of beauty and wonder; cake rolls are quite magical. At first they seemed like an impossible task, but after making two now, they are a breeze! This cake features a new-to-me method that is novel and easy. Roll the fresh-out-of-oven cake in a kitchen towel sprinkled with powdered sugar to cool completely. This allows the cake to rest in a rolled state to reduce cracking in the finished product, genius! This is the type of cake that look impressive, but is quite simple in practice.

There is a moist, flavorful, but light pumpkin sponge cake full of fall flavors like cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger. Inside is a creamy and sweet cream cheese filling. I hope you enjoy cream cheese frosting because this cake is packed inside! The cake stores best in the fridge for midday slicing and snacking or it would make a gorgeous centerpiece on any autumn tablescape. I think everyone needs a pumpkin roll in their life!

In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat the eggs and sugar together until pale yellow. Beat in the vanilla and pumpkin puree until well combined, scrape the bowl as needed.

Add the salt, spices*, baking powder, and baking soda, mix until well combined. Add the flour and mix on low until it is just incorporated.

Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan. Bake for 12-14 minutes or until the cake is set.

While the cake is baking, sprinkle a dish towel with powdered sugar.

When the cake comes out of the oven, invert it onto the prepared towel. Use the towel to roll the cake with the towel between layers. Let this rest on wire rack until the cake cools completely.

Filling – In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat together the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla and salt. Add the powdered sugar and mix first on low speed, and then on high speed. This will give you fluffy filling.

Carefully unroll the cake and spread the filling evenly inside. Use the towel to help re-roll the cake. Once rolled, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour, if not overnight.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar, slice, and serve!

* If you do not have 5 different spices, substitute and the spices above for 2 1/4 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice.

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Let us eat apple pie for breakfast. Trust me, it is going to be okay. Autumnal flavors can be enjoyed every meal of the day! And this apple pie is almost guilt free, just a little butter and sugar mixed with a whole lot of fruit, filling oats, and nutrient-packed chia seeds. This is the type of breakfast to keep me full all morning until lunch.

Saturday I ventured, by train no less, into the city to meet up with friends for some delightful conversation. In true New York fashion, it rained. Not the hard soaking you through rain, the slow miserable dribble rain. The type of rain that makes you feel you will never be dry again. Luckily it wasn’t cold, it was almost too warm. On days like that, I want to bug in under my afghan, watch some Netflix, and partake is some warm, spiced oatmeal. And hot chocolate, obviously hot chocolate.

I’ll admit, this overnight oatmeal is a little more work than the others, but completely worth the extra five minutes. Knowing you have two hearty breakfasts in the fridge ready to grab and go is worth the extra prep time the night before. Find your favorite apple, saute with some warm fall spices, toss it in a jar with the rest of your ingredients; now you have a warm, inviting, and delicious breakfast at your disposal!

Heat the butter in a small saute pan. Once the butter is melted, add the apple pieces and toss to coat in the butter. Stir and cook for about 2 minutes.

Sprinkle the spices over the apples and stir to combine. Add the salt, vanilla, and brown sugar. Stir continually to keep the sugar from burning. Add a splash of apple cider. Stir and cook until the apples are soft (but with a bit of a bite) and all the sugar has melted.

Divide the apple mixture between 2 pint-sized mason jars.

To each jar add 2 tablespoons chia seeds, 1/2 cup oatmeal, and 3/4-1 cup almond milk. If you like your oatmeal runnier, add a full cup of milk. Seal with the lid and shake to combine.

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Can we call this sexy pumpkin bread? Can pumpkin bread be sexy? Can pumpkin anything be sexy? Probably not. However, with the dark background and shadows, this pumpkin bread looks quite seductive. Pumpkin bread can be quite seductive; the spicy smells, the warmth of a freshly baked loaf, the crunchy top with a soft, tender interior, and most importantly the taste. It’s all of fall in one fantastic bite.

Have I convinced you to make a loaf of pumpkin bread yet? It’s easy enough and is probably my signature recipe. I rarely make a recipe twice, yet I’ve made this same version, with very few changes, for almost ten years. TEN YEARS! I’m not that old, so that means I’ve been making this since I was in college. My roommates from the B56-era knew autumn was welcomed in with a fresh loaf of pumpkin bread. The ladies of Butler Street knew it too and now my coworkers have been initiated in the fall pumpkin bread tradition.

The bread was polished in a few hours and made our CPR/AED training so much better. I can now save lives, or as the instructor put it, I can keep you dead, but at least get oxygen to your brain. True words. I love that retired NYC firefighters teach teachers how to save lives, it’s a pretty sweet retirement gig. Maybe I’ll teach people how to bake when I retire; only 25 more years!

I’ve made you this bread before; it was just in the form of muffins and truffles. This is the best form – simple and scrumptious. Since the bread has been consumed and I probably won’t make another loaf until 2015, I suggest you buy a can of pumpkin and make this bread yourself. You can even buy a little jar of pumpkin pie spice instead of measuring out five individual spices! Make yourself some sexy bread!

I made you popsicles. It’s summer, popsicles are good in the summer! They are cool, crisp, refreshing, and moderately healthy; they are like ice cream without any guilt. Well at least minimal guilt! Fruit, a little sugar, a little ginger candy and we’re done.

Here is the problem – I still don’t like eating popsicles! I won’t stop making them, I like popsicles in theory, but whenever I pull one out, I eat a few bites and throw the rest away. I’m weird. Just be warned, if you come over this summer I’m going to try and shove a popsicle in your face.

Strawberry + rhubarb is a classic combination. I was looking for inspiration at Whole Foods and saw the beautiful rhubarb and figured I should make something with it; strawberry rhubarb popsicles seemed like a natural pairing for some summer popsicles. Throw in some candied ginger because I’m a little out control in the bulk section, and we’re done! The popsicles are fruity, slightly tart and slightly sweet, but totally refreshing. It’s summer on a stick!